Publications
Blog Posts
- Spiders Help Children Learn in a BIG Way October 28, 2013 Gryphon House
Spiders might seem scary, especially when Halloween decorations include gigantic eight-legged creatures in webs stretching across entire walls. In my preschool class, however, we learn that spiders are really helpful animals because they eat insects that bother people, such as flies and mosquitoes. Fun learning experiences help children conquer their possible fears. Read full post.
- Diving into water explorations. July 17, 2013 Early Childhood Science Interest Forum
My sons loved to splash in the bathtub and wading pool when they were young, but I see now I missed an opportunity to take their play to a deeper level of exploration. When I began teaching preschool years later, I saw how playing with water provides the perfect opportunity for promoting scientific inquiry at school and at home. Read full post
- Summer Learning in Your Sandbox. July 10, 2013 Gryphon House
Children never tire of filling buckets with water and emptying them in the sandbox. These two simple elements provide many possibilities for exploration. I am fortunate to have a large outdoor sandbox at the preschool where I teach, but even a small sand area helps children learn through play. Read full post
- Six Ways to Think BIG and Learn BIG. February 22, 2013, Kaplan Early Learning
Children want to do BIG things because it makes them feel powerful and not so small. They love ENORMOUS numbers like a hundred million billion and BIG words like Tyrannosaurus rex. They love to spread their arms wide and run as fast as they can across a HUGE field.
Here’s how you can use children’s love of BIG things to create a strong foundation for higher-level thinking and learning. Read full post
- How Far Will Popcorn Fly? January 7, 2013, Gryphon House
A chilly day is the perfect time to pop a batch of popcorn and practice making predictions. This activity makes science and math irresistible and delicious! Read full post
- Pump Up the Learning With Pumpkins. October 9, 2012, Gryphon House
Halloween can be a challenge for teachers and families who would like to steer clear of the scary, commercial aspects of the holiday. Fortunately, children LOVE pumpkins which means I can take advantage of the excitement of the season to introduce many learning experiences through pumpkin activities in my preschool class. Read full post
- Ice Cube Hockey on Steamy Summer Days. July 11, 2012, Gryphon House
On a warm summer day, it’s fun to imagine you are skating down a hockey rink. It’s easy to do this at school or at home playing a non-competitive game my colleague Tim Dobbins invented – ice cube hockey! Read full post
- July 4th Activity Favorites from Our Bloggers. July3, 2012, Gryphon House
There’s no such thing as too much Fourth of July fun! So, we asked a few of our author bloggers to share their favorite July 4th activities this week. Whether it’s creating a star-studded pizza, hosting your own 4th of July parade, or becoming President for the day, this Independence Day is sure to be fun (and maybe even the teeniest bit educational) with these creative activity ideas! Read full post
- Summer Water Explorations. June 19, 2012, Gryphon House
What shape is water? I never considered that question until I became a preschool teacher. My sons loved to splash in the bathtub and wading pool when they were young, but I never thought to give them containers of different sizes and shapes so they could pour water from one cup to another and start to realize the fascinating fact that water always takes the shape of its container. Read full post
- Build a Giant Spider Web! May 25, 2012, Kaplan Early Learning
Even itsy, bitsy spiders can make GIANT webs! Explore spider webs with your children using this creative science activity from Thinking BIG, Learning BIG by Marie Faust Evitt. Read full post
- Raising Silkworms. May 23, 2012, Early Chilhood Science Interest Forum
Silkworms provide an easy way for children to see a complete life cycle in about 10 weeks. The preschool where I teach raises silkworms every spring. Read full post
- Invention Workshop. May 22, 2012, Gryphon House
As the end of the school year fast approaches for my preschool class, we’re having fun exploring the invention process. I love introducing children to the empowering idea that anyone can be an inventor. As Thomas Edison said, "To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk." Read full post
- Wind Power. May 1, 2012, Gryphon House
On blustery spring days children in my preschool class love to run with their arms outstretched as if they were airplanes. Sometimes they'll ask, "What is wind?" If I answered, "Wind is air that is moving" they would still have questions. Instead I say, "Let’s see if we can figure that out." Read full post.
- Spring wildflowers: Introducing guest blogger Marie Faust Evitt. April 28, 2012, NSTA Early Years Blog
Spring is in full bloom here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I've discovered that when I'm out walking with my nature fieldtrip class the children are much more excited about seeing wildflowers when they are looking for a few specific flowers as if it were a treasure hunt. And they are quicker to notice the flowers if we have talked about the flower names ahead of time and come up with, gestures to remember them. Read full post.
- Where Did the Puddles Go? March 27, 2012, Gryphon House
Rain is a novelty for my California preschoolers. It was a big deal one recent day when rain fell on the cement patio outside our classroom. Then just like the Itsy Bitsy song, “Out came the sun and dried up all the rain…” Where did the rain go, the children wondered.
“Let’s be scientists and see if we can figure out what happened,” I said.
“What do we need?” “More water!” the children exclaimed. “OK. Let’s fill some sand pails with water and I’ll get brushes,” I said. Read full post.
- Will It Rain? Will It Snow? Who Knows! March 23, 2012, Gryphon House
One of my big discoveries as a preschool teacher was seeing how much children enjoy science. They love pouring water, mixing paint colors, rolling balls down ramps and watching wiggling earthworms. All the while they are looking closely, asking questions and trying out ideas. “What will happen if I pour this big container of water into this tiny container?” They are scientists. Read full post.
Magazine and Newspaper articles
- "Ready, Set, Learn! We’re Off to the Moon" February/March 2014 NAEYC Teaching Young Children (TYC)
It was the start of a new school day and yet another round of Star Wars play among a group of 4- and 5-year-olds in my preschool class. Some children brandished their invisible lightsabers and others ran from them. Every day they played basically the same game, showing little interest in art experiences, science explorations, or math games.
Read full post.
- "A Web of Learning" (pdf). September 2011 NSTA Science & Children
Beyond "Itsy Bitsy Spider" preschool students learn science content naturally
In our preschool play yard, four-year-old Justin was yelling, “Teacher Tim, Teacher Marie, there’s a spider under the slide! We need to get it!”
“What do you think we need?” Teacher Tim, my assistant, asked.
“A cup or something, so we can look at it. It’s huge!” Justin shouted.
Read full post.
About Thinking BIG, Learning BIG
